Image by Andrej Lišakov.
Pope Francis died on Easter Monday at the age of 88. On April 22, Nabil Al-Tikriti, a Professor of Middle East History at the University of Mary Washington, stated that: “Pope Francis was an incredible pope, by far the best of my lifetime.”
Al-Tikriti noted that “Francis was outspoken about humanity in Gaza” and praised Pope Francis for his regular communications with the Holy Family Catholic Church in Gaza.
The Holy Family Church congregation is led by Father Gabriel Romanelli. Romanelli was quoted in the UK’s Sky News on April 22 stating that the Pope called him every day, right up to Easter Saturday. “It’s a very sad day for us,” Romanelli commented.
Father Romanelli recalled the Pope’s Easter phone call to Gaza’s only Catholic church, two days before he died: “he asked [for] prayer and gave the blessing for all the people, for the Christian community and for all the citizens in Gaza.”
On the next day, Easter Sunday, the Pope delivered this final address. His semon focussed on the need for kindness and peace and for people to trust those who “who are different than ourselves.”
Pope Francis called for an end to hatred and violence, especially in the Middle East: “I would like us to renew our hope that peace is possible! From the Holy Sepulchre, the Church of the Resurrection, where this year Easter is being celebrated by Catholics and Orthodox on the same day, may the light of peace radiate throughout the Holy Land and the entire world. I express my closeness to the sufferings of Christians in Palestine and Israel, and to all the Israeli people and the Palestinian people. The growing climate of anti-Semitism throughout the world is worrisome. Yet at the same time, I think of the people of Gaza, and its Christian community in particular, where the terrible conflict continues to cause death and destruction and to create a dramatic and deplorable humanitarian situation. I appeal to the warring parties: call a ceasefire, release the hostages and come to the aid of a starving people that aspires to a future of peace!”
The Pope prayed for communities in Lebanon and Syria who he said were “experiencing a delicate transition in its history.” He highlighted “prolonged humanitarian crises because of war” in Yemen.
He spoke of the need for peace in Ukraine and encouraged “all parties involved to pursue efforts aimed at achieving a just and lasting peace.” He also called on people to pray “that a final peace agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan will soon be signed and implemented, and lead to long-awaited reconciliation in the region.”
Pope Francis called for prayers for “victims of violence and conflict, especially in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in Sudan and South Sudan.” He called for more assistance to “the people of Myanmar, plagued by long years of armed conflict, who, with courage and patience, are dealing with the aftermath of the devastating earthquake in Sagaing, which caused the death of thousands and great suffering for the many survivors, including orphans and the elderly.” He thanked those working on relief efforts and said that the “announcement of a ceasefire by various actors in the country is a sign of hope for the whole of Myanmar.”
The Pope said that “There can be no peace without freedom of religion, freedom of thought, freedom of expression and respect for the views of others.” He stated that peace is not “possible without true disarmament!” and noted that the “requirement that every people provide for its own defence must not turn into a race to rearmament.” He called for an increase in “mutual solidarity.”
The Pope appealed “to all those in positions of political responsibility in our world not to yield to the logic of fear which only leads to isolation from others, but rather to use the resources available to help the needy, to fight hunger and to encourage initiatives that promote development.”
The pope lamented the “cruelty of conflicts that involve defenceless civilians and attack schools, hospitals and humanitarian workers” and noted that “we cannot allow ourselves to forget that it is not targets that are struck, but persons, each possessed of a soul and human dignity.”
Working until his last day, the Pope spent his final days the same way he spent his papacy – advocating for justice, calling for a better world. His refusal to stay silent inspired the religious and the non-believers alike. As professor Al-Tikriti and others have noted, Pope Francis was a moral voice in desperate times. His legacy will live on.
